Doris is asteroid #48 and of the type C or CG. Doris was discovered by the German-French astronomer and painter Hermann Mayer Salomon Goldschmidt from his balcony in Paris. This was in 1857. The asteroid later also got the designation 1948 FE. This asteroid’s orbit is characterized by a semi-major axis of 3.11 Astronomical Units, an eccentricity of 0.08, a period of revolution of 2 002 days, and an inclination of 6.6 degrees. Doris is an extremely irregularly shaped celestial object.

In order to find a name for the object, Jacques Babinet of the French Academy of Sciences created a shortlist and asked the geologist Élie de Beaumont to make the selection. De Beaumont chose Doris, after an Okeanid from Greek mythology. Since Doris was discovered on the same night as the asteroid Pales, de Beaumont additionally suggested naming the two “the Twins”. Doris and Pales of course aren’t twins.

Doris is named after Dōrís (Δωρίς), an Okeanid from Greek mythology. Okeanids are the daughters of the sea goddess Tēthýs (Τηθύς) with Ōkeanós (Ὠκεανός). Dōrís (Δωρίς) is the mother of the Nereids, while Nēreús (Νηρεύς) is their father. One of the Nereids is named Dōrís (Δωρίς) too. But the most important of the Nereids is Amphitrite (Ἀμφιτρίτη). One source also lists her as an Okeanid. Dōrís (Δωρίς) is the goddess of rich fishing-grounds at river-mouths. Most Okeanids and also most Nereids are only names in lists and have no tales or relevance.

Doris is a given name, that once was popular everywhere in Europe. Doris could mean “Doric woman”. But whether Doric or Dōrís (Δωρίς) was first and what it means is disputed. Dōrís (Δωρίς) mainly is the link between the Okeanids and the Nereids, two generations of goddesses, who barely have any relevance.

Astrological interpretations of Doris could be: Success in fishing; originating from the Doric region in Greece; something is passed on from generation to generation. The latter because Dōrís (Δωρίς) has a daughter, who is named Dōrís (Δωρίς).